Create Your Life

Acupuncture removes blocks to Creativity

For over thirty years of practicing in Manhattan it has been an extraordinary joy to treat actors, authors, and artists of all kinds and to be a witness to their creative process. I treated a legendary actor many times, between the Wednesday matinee and evening performance; a super model relayed to me the advice Elizabeth Taylor gave her about how to handle entering a large party when she felt shy or unattractive; another client described watching Marilyn Monroe, while relaxed and open at a party, transform herself in seconds into her public persona; once, I got to treat a movie actress on the set - within five minutes of the treatment she aced, in one take, the final dramatic scene of the movie for which she later won an Academy Award. Although we had barely spoken, I was a witness to her astounding focus. An artist myself, I’ve felt especially privileged to learn from these people and I’m endlessly fascinated by the creative process.

We All Create Our Lives

Creativity isn’t, however, about famous people, or even just about artists. Each of us, if we’re not just in survival mode, is in the process of creating our future life. We all can utilize the techniques of artists to pursue our dreams. If we are to do anything remarkable, we first must have a spiritual vision of our goal and we need the self-worth and confidence to pursue our dreams. Being a good parent, putting healthy food on the table week after week, or running a business all require incredible creativity. Vincent Van Gogh dramatically stated, “The most creative thing is to love people.” The technique for helping a famous writer with writer’s block can be very similar to helping someone clear away years of clutter in their home, or starting to date again after divorce.

First, Deal with the Body

Acupuncture treats energy and the first steps to creativity are often solving physical problems, like pain or fatigue. There are acupuncture points that instantly take the body out of fight or flight mode. There are also points that immediately clear the body of negative energy and there are points that help with fatigue.

The Real You

I think of the Constitutional Type as the Real You (take a look at my page “12 Types.”) Frequently discussing a person’s Constitutional type can reveal ways in which their environment is not conducive to following their dreams. For example Tai Yin Earth people can be overly sensitive to criticism and should be careful to discuss their creative process only with people who are invested in their happiness. Another type, the Shao Yin person, could be pursuing their goals in the evening after a day job, but that could only be a short term strategy because their energy is best in the morning and they very quickly can become tired and discouraged. Enthusiastic Shao Yang people are the world’s cheerleaders, but they can become agitated if people around them aren’t equally enthusiastic about their endeavors.

Acupuncture and the Door of Hope

Far more direct than counseling, acupuncture is miraculous at changing energy. A simple way to conceptualize this energy is to say that acupuncture treats body, mind, and spirit and there are acupuncture points that are associated with each level of energy. For example, people who are going through major life transitions have sensitivity at a spirit point called “Door of Hope,” which diagnoses whether the person has a vision for their life. There are physical issues that can block that point such as alcoholism and recreational drugs, but it can blocked for many reasons. Divorce is a good example. Most people will have an issue with the Door of Hope because the vision they had of their future, with their spouse, is no longer possible. But there are people whose Door of Hope remains open during divorce because, spiritually, they are pursuing a new vision of their future. Acupuncture can simply open the Door of Hope.